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But Quebec Is Still Preferred Choice

Bombardier Aerospace is considering Kansas City, MO as a site
for a passenger jet assembly plant, with a projected construction
cost of $375 million US, according to city and state officials.

The Associated Press reports while it's still early, discussions
have gone far enough that state officials outlined legislation
Tuesday to provide state tax credits as a prerequisite for closing
the deal.

Bombardier Aerospace, based in Montreal, Quebec, needs a place
to assemble the CSeries of 110- and 130-seat passenger jets. The
plant would eventually employ up to 2,100 people directly, and
indirectly generate more than 5,000 more jobs at other area
employers. The estimated overall economic impact over 22 years
would be $5.9 billion US.

In a Tuesday interview, Missouri Department of Economic
Development Director Greg Steinhoff told the AP, "This is
exponentially larger than any deal we've ever done."

Bob Marcusse, president of the Kansas City Economic Development
Council, told The Kansas City Star the new plant "...would be a
game-changer for Kansas City. We would suddenly be major players in
the aviation industry."

Even with its economic-incentive ducks in a row, the city and
the state would have to wait out a battle over an earlier political
commitment by the company to expand in Canada. That commitment was
made before a plummeting US Dollar made locations in the states
much more compelling.

The plant also might not be built
anywhere unless Bombardier can generate enough advance orders to
justify it.

Bombardier spokesman Marc Duchesne confirmed Tuesday to the AP
the company has talked to Missouri officials, but indicated other
states may also be in the running. The company already employs
5,000 people in the US, with major operations in Dallas, Tucson,
and West Virginia.

Duchesne added the company's "preferred choice" for a new plant
is still Mirabel, Quebec.